M4A4 (China)

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Tu-1 Pack
cn_m4a4_sherman.png
␗M4A4
AB RB SB
3.7 3.7 3.7
Class:
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Description

GarageImage M4A4 (China).jpg


The ␗Medium Tank M4A4 Sherman is a rank II Chinese medium tank with a battle rating of 3.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.91 "Night Vision".

General info

Survivability and armour

The hull is very similar to the American M4 Sherman, with a 50.8 mm thick upper glacis and protruding hatches interrupting the glacis (augmented with appliqué armour). Weak spots here include the machine gun port and ventilator on the right side. The hull sides feature appliqué armour plates covering the ammunition storage racks. The turret is also very similar but lacks the appliqué armour on the right cheek, leaving a small weakened zone in that area. Frontal protection is quite good for its rank and shots from smaller anti-tank guns can generally be shrugged off, particularly when hull down. However more powerful guns such as the Panzer IV F2's long 75mm can destroy the tank easily, so care should be taken. The side armour is only 38.1 mm thick and can be easily penetrated by just about any anti-tank gun, but the appliqué armour on this model can help if the tank is angled.

Mobility

Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability, as well as the maximum speed forwards and backwards.

Game Mode Max Speed (km/h) Weight (tons) Engine power (horsepower) Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Forward Reverse Stock Upgraded Stock Upgraded
Arcade 45 6 32.2 620 811 19.25 25.19
Realistic 41 5 354 425 10.99 13.2

Armaments

Main armament

Main article: M3 (75 mm)
75 mm M3 Turret rotation speed (°/s) Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode Capacity Vertical Horizontal Stabilizer Stock Upgraded Full Expert Aced Stock Full Expert Aced
Arcade 97 -10°/+25° ±180° Vertical 22.8 31.6 38.4 __._ 45.2 6.5 5.7 5.3 5.0
Realistic 14.3 16.8 20.4 22.6 24.0

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
M48 shell HE 10 10 10 10 10 10
M61 shot APCBC 104 101 90 78 68 59
M72 shot AP 91 88 78 67 57 49
Shell details
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
Mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive Mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Normalisation at 30°
from horizontal
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
M48 shell HE 463 6.3 0.4 0.5 666 +0.0° 79° 80° 81°
M61 shot APCBC 618 6.79 1.2 14.0 63.7 +4.0° 48° 63° 71°
M72 shot AP 619 6.3 N/A N/A N/A -1.0° 47° 60° 65°
Smoke shell characteristics
Ammunition Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
Mass (kg)
Screen radius
(m)
Screen deploy time
(s)
Screen hold time
(s)
Explosive Mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
M89 259 3.0 13 5 20 50

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M4A4 (China)
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
3rd
rack empty
4th
rack empty
5th
rack empty
6th
rack empty
7th
rack empty
8th
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
97 85 (+12) 73 (+24) 61 (+36) 49 (+48) 37 (+60) 25 (+72) 13 (+84) (+96) Yes

Machine guns

Main article: M1919A4 (7.62 mm)

The M4A4 only has a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun and lacks the familiar pintle-mounted M2 Browning seen on other Sherman models. This makes fending off lightly-armoured and fast opponents like the Puma more difficult as the main gun must be used instead. The lone M1919A4 is also unlikely to do significant damage to incoming aircraft.

7.62 mm M1919A4
Mount Capacity
(Belt capacity)
Rate of fire
(shots/minute)
Vertical
guidance
Horizontal
guidance
Coaxial 3,000 (250) 500 N/A N/A

Usage in battles

A well rounded tank like most Shermans, the M4A4 enjoys decent armour, mobility, and firepower compared to its peers. Anyone familiar with the early Sherman models from other tech trees will feel right at home. It is best used at medium ranges, where the gun and armour are both quite effective, but it can partake in close range brawling in a pinch thanks to its vertical stabilizer. Stick close to teammates, keep an eye on the surroundings, and avoid overextending, as the reverse speed is bad and it is hard to retreat quickly.

While the frontal armour is good, especially when angled, staying constantly exposed to enemy fire is not advised due to the large number of weak spots. When hull-down, try to hide the portion of the right turret cheek next to the gun mantlet when possible, as the armour there is thin and lucky shot from a reserve tank might go through it. The side armour is very poor and it pays to watch out for flankers, even SPAAs.

Compared to the contemporary T-34 (1943) in the PLA line of the Chinese tree, the M4A4 has worse mobility but enjoys vastly improved gun handling. They are good complements to each other, as the T-34 excels in fast, aggressive attacks while the M4A4 is good for methodical pushes and hull-down scenarios.

Modules

Tier Mobility Protection Firepower
I Tracks Parts Horizontal Drive
II Suspension Brake System FPE Adjustment of Fire M61 shot
III Filters Crew Replenishment Elevation Mechanism
IV Transmission Engine Artillery Support M89

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Excellent gun depression of -10° plus the angled frontal turret allows it to utilise hills very well.
  • Great penetration and post-penetration damage when using M61 shells. Can frontally penetrate and one-shot most opponents like the Pz.IV F2, M4, Chi-Nu, etc.
  • Vertical stabiliser allows it to fire on the move, or, in a sudden encounter, fire before the enemy which is critical.
  • Well angled frontal armor. When angling the hull it can deflect some low caliber / low-penetrating shells like the Stuarts' 37mm, 75mm M1, 76mm F-34 / Zis-5, etc.
  • Adequate top speed allows it to get to positions in time, or to do tactical maneuvers like flanking.

Cons:

  • Large profile and weak side armor. Flankers like the Sd.kfz.234/2 can easily see and penetrate it.
  • Frontal armor is still inadequate, will get frontally penetrated and one-shot by tanks like Pz.IV F2 / G, StuG III F / G, M10, etc
  • The best M61 shell struggles to penetrate heavy targets like Pz.Kpfw. Churchill, KV I C 756 (r) or even the M4A2 when angled.
  • Trajectory is curved and velocity is low due to its short barrel, thus distant / moving targets are hard to shoot at.
  • Hull traverse is quite slow, making it sluggish in a turn.
  • Unlike comparable Shermans, it does not have a heavy machine gun. Its only 7.62mm makes it ineffective against armored SPAA like the Wirbelwind.

History

The product of a production shortage of Ford GAA V8 engines, the M4A4 instead used the Chrysler A57 multibank. Due to the much more complex maintenance that the engine required, the A4 was unpopular with American mechanics and nearly all models were sent to the British, Soviets, and Chinese.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

  • reference to the series of the vehicles;
  • links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

  • topic on the official game forum;
  • encyclopedia page on the tank;
  • other literature.


China medium tanks
ZTZ59  Type 59 · ZTZ59A · ZTZ59D1
ZTZ69  Type 69 · Type 69-IIa
ZTZ88/96  ZTZ88A · ZTZ88B
  ZTZ96 · ZTZ96A · ZTZ96A (P)
ZTZ99  ZTZ99-II · ZTZ99-III
ZTZ99A  ZTZ99A · WZ1001(E) LCT
Export series  MBT-2000 · VT4A1
ROC  CM11
Other  Т-34-85 Gai · Object 122MT "MC"
Bangladesh  T-69 II G
Japan  ␗Chi-Ha · ␗Chi-Ha Kai
Pakistan  Al-Khalid-I
USA  ␗M4A4 · ␗M4A4 (1st PTG) · ␗M4A1 (75) W · ␗M48A1 · ␗M60A3 TTS
USSR  ␗T-34 (1943) · ␗Т-34-85 (S-53) · T-34-85 No.215 · Т-62 №545